Center-bearing for railway-cars.



O. ANDERSON. CENTER BEARING FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2,1912.

Patented Sept. 3, 1912.

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0. ANDERSON. CENTER BEARING FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2,1912.

Patented Sept. 3, 1912 4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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CENTER BEARING EOE RAILWAY CARS. APPLICATION TILED MAY 2,1912.

1,037,576, Patented Sept. 3, 1912.

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i v r I r I, 3 5 azjfizdum 0. ANDERSON. CENTER BEARING FOR RAILWAY CARS.

. APPLICATION FILED MAY 2, 1912.

Patented Sept. 3, 1912.

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OLO F ANDE'RSONfOF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CENTER-BEARING FOR RAILWAY-CARS.

Spetiflcation of Letters Patent. Patented Sept, 3, 1912.

Application filed May 2, 1912. Serial no. e94,7o1.- I

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OLOF ANnERsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at -Chicago, in the county' of Cookand State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Center-Bearing for Railway-Cars, of which the following is a specification. I

My object is to provide improved centerbearmg uniting means, of simple, strong and durable construction, for the bodies and trucks of [railway-cars, which will efi'ect great saving'in weight and cost over the constructions hitherto generally employed,

reduce to a minimum the number of separate pieces entering into the construction, permit lowering, to a very material extent, of the body underframe and floor-line, as well as the center of gravity of the car to decrease danger of derailment, and elimi nate side-bearing friction which. not only adds to the pulling force necessary but also to the wear upon wheel-flanges and rails.

Another object ,is to provide a center bearing construction which will facilitate the designing of the car under-frame in such a way that its constituent parts may be readily proportioned, -with regard to strength, tothe known forces to-which they are to be subjected in service. i

In carrying out my invention, I dispense with the usual car-body bolsters and connectthe car undcrframe directly with each truck through center-bearing uniting means of novel and improved construction.

In; the accompanying drawings, which show my improvements applied to a freightcar, Figure 1 is a broken, fragmentary view of a'box-car, showing my improvements in elevation; Fig. 2, a central longitudinal section of the same; Fig. 3, a plan view of the car center-sills, center-bearing and truck; Fig. 4, a broken plan-section of parts taken on line 4, in Fig. 1; Figs. 5 and 6, sections taken respectively on lines 5 and 6 in Fig. 1; Fig. 7, an enlarged, broken, sectional view of parts entering into the center-bearing construction, the section being taken on line 7 in Fig. 2; and.'I ig.v 8, a planview of the car underframe taken beneath the floorline of-the car.

The reference numeral 10 designates a ear-body built upon a steel underframe which may, as shown, he. formed of the usual channel-beam center-sills 11, Z-bar side sills 12, end-sills 13, and I-bar reinforcing crossbearers 14, 15 carrying the longitudinally.

bearers to transmit the load 'in the truck ends.

' mitte extending, wooden,'fioor and side attaching, t mbers 16.- Extending under the center-- 81118 at the cross-bearers 15 are cross-ties 1] which operate with the end sills and crossto the heavy center-sills 11.

.The car-trucks, as I prefer to construct them, have side-frames each formed with an integral upper arch-bar 18, and lower archb ar l9, ofrolled-plate or'cast-steel, with the tie-bar 20 as a separate piece, and fitted with the usual journal-boxes 21 for the wheel-axles 22. Between the cross-bearers 14, toward each 'end of the underfrarne and mounted between and secured to the centersills 11, is a bearing-block '23, containing a central chamber 24v and having a flange 25 at each side extending under the center-sills.

The top of the block is formed with a central, cyl ndrical, upper pivot-pin'26 having an open1ng27 through it to the chamber 24; and the under side of the block is formed with a central,'cylindrical, lower pivot-pin 28 having an opening 29't-hrough it and sur-- rounded by an annular center-bearing member, forming a socket, 30. i

The numeral 31 designates, adiamondshaped truck-bolster frame which may be a single piece, or be-built upof a plurality of parts, of any suitable material. It has a central opening, or space, 32 and ends 33 which fit loosely through guide-openings 34 Extending across the truck, beneaththe bolster 31, is a channel beam 35 resting at its ends in the openings 34 upon the lower arch-bars 19.. Formed upon the bolster 31 are stops 36 which, by engaging the u per arch bars 18, limit the lateral play 0 the bolster in the truckframe. The truck-springs 37 are mounted upon seat-plates 38, resting on the beam 35, and the spring-caps consist of upper plates or members 39 and under plates or members 40 with roller-bearings 41 between them. The ends 33 of the bolster rest upon the upper spring-cap members 39 and the roller earings reduce friction between the parts durin the slight lateral movement per- (I to the bolster with reference to the truck-frame, in practice. In the lower side of the space or opening 32 the bolster is provided with a central bearing-socket 42, for the pivot-pin 28, surrounded by an annular center-bearing member, in the form of a ton ue or projection, 43 fitting into the centerearing member 30. Forming part of the bolster, and secured in place by nut-bolts 44, is a'cap-plate 45 having a central bearingsocket 46 receiving the upper pivot pin 26. In the drawings I show safety chains 4T,

connecting the car underframe and ends of the bolster, which should be sufficiently slack to permitthe bolster to swing the desired distance with reference to the car-body.

for rounding curves in the track.-

The alined plvot-pins cally an integral part of the center-sills, of

the car-body and fit loosely the bearing, sockets 46, 42 in the truck-bolster, so that, while they -may turn readily they have only All yielding resistance. to oscillation of'the car-body is contributed by the truck-springs 37. Thus there can be but limited oscillation, in the vertical plane, of the car-body with reference to the truck bolster. The support ing points of the car-body are at the centerbearlngs, formed by the members 30, 43, and they as well as the truck-springs 37 are located, preferably, at the lowest practical.

-ilevel, inthe plane of the car-axles or so little above them as to approximate that plane. To detach the car underframe from the truck it is only necessary to uncouple the chains 47, if employed, and removethe bolts 44 to free the cap-plate 45 from the truck-bolster. The car-body may then be jacked up to raise the pivot-pin 28 out of the socket 42 when the truck may be withdrawn. To attach the truck it is only necessary to wheel it under the car-body until its socket 42 registers with the pivot-pin 28, lower the car-body and bolt the plate 45 in position. Tochange the car-w ieels and axles the car-body and truck may be raised together without the necessity of removing the cap-plate 45.

My improved construction of centerbearing involves comparatively few parts and has made it possible for me in designing the car underframe to eliminate a number of the details heretofore provided and which in the matter of strength were largely guess-work- The elimination of parts and simplification in design makes it compara tively easy to trace the forces with great accuracy and determine the amount of metal needed for each art. This elimination of parts, including t e usual body-bolster, has made it possible without sacrifice of neces sary strength to decrease the weight of the underframe and trucks .to. a very material and desirable extent with at least a proportionate decrease in the cost of construct-ion 26, 28 are practias well as inthe cost of maintenance. The pin and socket connection between the underframe and truck-bolster forms in itself the sole preventing means against abnormal rocking of the car-body relative to the truckbolster, and the construction dispenses with the usual side-bearings. It has been estimated from dynamometer tests that approximately two per cent, of the pulling force from the locomotive is lost in sidebearing friction, as it is called; and while this friction has been reduced in some cars by providing the side-bearings of a rollerbearing construct-ion, such a construction adds materially to thecost and does not fully overcome the trouble. By dispensing with side-bearings altogether. the loss of power stated is not only avoided but also the effect of the addedresistance of side-bearings which tends in practice to cause undue wear of the wheel-flanges and rails.

The lowering of the floor-line of the car makes it possible to increase the height, and therefore the capacity, of box-cars which are restricted, as to total height, by tunnel and viaduct clearances. The lowering of the center of gravity of the car due to my construction decreases liability of derailment, which is a great factor in cars of large cubical capacity, especially in fast freight service.

The foregoing description is intended to convey a clear understandin of my improvements in what I now believe to be the best form of their embodiment, and no undue limitation should be understood there-- from. It is my intention to claim all that is novel in my invention, and that the claims shall be construed as broadly as the prior state of the art may warrant.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination with a car-body underframe and a truck having a yieldingly supported truck-bolster, of a center-bearing and alined, upper and lower, pivotally engaging, pin and socket connections between said underframe and bolster.

2. In combination, the center-sills of a car-body underframe, a truck-bolster sur- 115 rounding said center-sills, and a centerbearing for said center-sills in the truckbolster.

3. In combination, the center-sills of a car-oody underframe, a truck-bolster sur- 120 rounding said center-sills, a center-bearing for said sills in said bolster, and alined Divotally'engaging. pin'and socket connections between said sills at their upper and lower sides, and said bolster.

4. In combination, the center-sills of a car-body unuerframe, a truck-bolster surrounding s'aid center-sills, a center-bearing, for the car-body in the truck-bolster,

formed with a block, mounted between said 1 center-sills, having alined, pivotally engaging, pin and socket connections, at its upper and under sides, with said bolster.

5. In combination, the center-sills of a car-body underframe, a truck-bolster comprising a frame, having an opening through which said sills extend, and a cap for said opening removably secured to said frame, a

center-bearing support for the car-body in said frame, a pivotal, inand socket con- 'nection between said 8111s, at their undersides, and said frame, and a ivotal pin and socket connection between said sills, at their upper sides, and said cap.

. 6. In combination, the center-sills ofca car-body. underframe, atruck-bolster comprising a frame having an opening through which said sills extend, a cap for said opening removably secured to said frame, a center-bearing, for the car-body in said frame, 20

formed with a block mounted between said center-sills and having an oil-holdingichamber, alined, pivotally engaging, pin and socket connections between said b1ock,'at its under and upper sides, and said frame and 25 cap, and an oiling-opening from said cham her to the lower of said pin and socket con- 

